Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Lowered to Strong Sell Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a report published on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

VKTX has been the subject of several other reports. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on Viking Therapeutics from $106.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Viking Therapeutics from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $102.00 target price on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a report on Monday, September 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Viking Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $87.14.

Viking Therapeutics Stock Performance

VKTX traded up $0.89 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $34.27. 636,093 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,669,068. The stock has a market cap of $3.87 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.23 and a beta of 0.71. Viking Therapeutics has a twelve month low of $18.92 and a twelve month high of $43.15. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $35.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.80.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The biotechnology company reported ($0.81) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.67) by ($0.14). The company’s quarterly revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.22) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Viking Therapeutics will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Greg Zante sold 57,661 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.90, for a total transaction of $1,897,046.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 189,891 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,247,413.90. The trade was a 23.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Marianna Mancini sold 57,661 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.98, for a total value of $1,901,659.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 409,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,495,086.20. This represents a 12.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 476,090 shares of company stock worth $15,985,782. 4.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Viking Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $12,201,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at approximately $46,846,000. Marex Group plc acquired a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at approximately $983,000. Bryce Point Capital LLC bought a new position in Viking Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $499,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Viking Therapeutics by 24.0% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 51,925 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,476,000 after buying an additional 10,048 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.03% of the company’s stock.

About Viking Therapeutics

Viking Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapies for metabolic and endocrine disorders. Headquartered in San Diego, California, the company’s pipeline leverages small-molecule approaches to target hormone signaling pathways implicated in conditions such as non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes and muscle wasting disorders.

The company’s lead programs include VK2809, a thyroid hormone receptor‐beta agonist designed to reduce liver fat and improve lipid profiles in patients with NASH and dyslipidemia, and VK5211, a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) aimed at enhancing muscle mass and function in individuals with muscle wasting conditions.